


What Friends Are For

by Wildlyaskew



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe - College/University, CAPTAIN SQUAD, Domestic, Enemies to Friends, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Slice of Life, Swearing, kind of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 12:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29933397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wildlyaskew/pseuds/Wildlyaskew
Summary: Daichi, Kuroo, Bokuto, Oikawa, and Ushijima are living together in college. They get on each other’s nerves, but they love each other anyway. A series of 4 + 1 fics.
Relationships: Bokuto Koutarou & Kuroo Tetsurou, Bokuto Koutarou & Kuroo Tetsurou & Oikawa Tooru & Sawamura Daichi & Ushijima Wakatoshi, Kozume Kenma & Kuroo Tetsurou, Tendou Satori & Ushijima Wakatoshi
Comments: 5
Kudos: 9





	1. Kuroo: Provoking + Pacifying

1: Ushijima

Despite what his single-minded drive in volleyball might suggest, Ushijima was not particularly competitive by nature. He was always practical rather than prideful, willing to back down from an argument or a challenge if he realized he was wrong. It made him an excellent person to talk to about personal matters— always objective and honest, never taking a side he didn’t believe in— but Kuroo privately wished he was a little easier to rile up, especially during Mario Kart.

  
“You drive like an old man, Ushijima.”

“If by that you mean ‘safely and at an appropriate speed’, then I would agree.”

Kuroo sighed. He wished Ushijima would get a little more into it for once. It wasn’t that he wasn’t trying, on the contrary, what really annoyed Kuroo was that Ushijima _kept winning_. If he would just lose his head a little bit, maybe he would slip up, but while the rest of the room was overtaken with curses, shouts, and the occasional attempt to hijack the opponents’ controllers (a strategy now declared illegal by unanimous decision after the notorious Vodka and Scented Candles Incident), Ushijima sat quietly and calmly, proudly leading Yoshi to victory again and again. Kuroo, meanwhile, had made it his singleminded goal to get the man to break.

“Aww, did you fall off again, Ushi? Do we need to do an easier track for you?”

“I was a lap ahead of you anyway, Kuroo. I’m still winning.”

So, condescending mockery did nothing. “Uh-oh, it looks like Oikawa’s gaining on you. And in the last lap, too. Lookin’ bad for you, man.”

“The past two laps, Oikawa has fallen off the track at this next turn. I think he will again, so I’m not worried.”

  
Applying pressure didn’t seem to help, either. Ushijima pulled past the finish line first, closely followed by Daichi, then Kuroo, then Oikawa (who had indeed fallen off the track). Bokuto came in last yet again.

“Hacks! Hacks I say,” he joked. Ushijima scoffed at his suggestion.

“I don’t see how that would work. We are using the same console.”

Now, this might work.

“Hacks, huh,” Kuroo teased, “he has a point. You’ve won a lot of races, big guy. If I didn’t know you better, I’d be getting suspicious.”

Ushijima looked at him with his eyebrows furrowed.

“You know I wouldn’t do that. I keep winning because I’m better at this game than all of you.”

Oikawa gasped at that (very factual) insult. Bokuto pulled an imaginary dagger from his heart. Daichi seemed to catch what Kuroo was going for.

“I hate to say it, but I don’t know. Should we switch controllers, just to be safe?”

  
“Fine. That’s fine with me. Nothing will change. I will still beat all of you, easily.”

Now he was really getting into it. Daichi and Ushijima exchanged controllers, and started the next round. Through skill alone, Daichi managed to win.

“Woah!” Bokuto gasped. “Rigged controller! I can’t believe you would do this to us, Ushijima.”

Oikawa clicked his tongue.  
“It’s always the ones you least expect, huh?”

Ushijima’s voice boomed across the room.

“One more round.” He was staring at the screen with an intensity that none of the others had seen on his face outside of a volleyball court.

Kuroo grinned to himself. Now the game was getting interesting.

  
2: Oikawa

“Tettsuuuun!” Oikawa’s affectionate nickname, shouted from the other side of the dorm, jolted Kuroo out of his focused state.

“Whaaaat? I’m doing homework!”

“Can you come help me? I need to pick something to wear!”

“Get someone else to do it!”

“It’s for a date! You’re the only one here who understands my natural sex appeal!”

Kuroo rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t hear a ‘please’!”

Daichi’s very tired-looking face popped into the room.

“Kuroo, for the love of God, just go help him and stop yelling.”

Kuroo got up from his seat, but not without a dramatic sigh, and a glare at Daichi to convey that he was doing it because he wanted to anyway, not because he was told to. That’ll show him.

As soon as he entered the room, Kuroo could sense Oikawa’s distress. Clothes were everywhere, sorted into piles based on criteria that Kuroo couldn’t even begin to guess at. To say that Oikawa looked frustrated would be an understatement.

“Please, just help me out.”

“Well, let’s see what we’re working with.” Kuroo took an appraising look around the room. Oikawa dressed well, and he could pull off practically anything, but there were a few pieces that confused him. He picked up a pair of what seemed to be... plaid shorts. Huh.

“I have no idea what to— those? You think those? Are you sure?” Oikawa’s voice was frantic. He wasn’t usually this nervous for dates. Kuroo knew he shouldn’t take advantage of his dear friend’s state of panic. But still...

“Oh yeah, absolutely. Gotta show off those legs, and the pattern adds... visual interest?”

Kuroo’s bullshit explanation seemed to work well enough for Oikawa. He took the shorts with seemingly no hesitation. Kuroo looked around the room again, scanning for something that would go well— or poorly— with the hideous shorts. A bundle of lime green fuzz caught his eye, and he picked it up to reveal a soft, stripy sweater. Jackpot.

“Here, this will work great.” Oikawa seemed a little more doubtful this time.

“Are you sure? Shorts with a sweater seems weird. And the prints don’t really go together.”

Shit. He had to justify this choice, and fast.

“It’s... contrast, you know? It’ll stand out. With the tan shorts, you need a pop of color, right? Plus, it’s cozy, and you seem nervous, so you might as well go for comfort.”

Oikawa took the sweater without a word. Kuroo tried to give him his least mischievous smile.

“Now, about the shoes...”

Finally, Oikawa stepped out of his room. From the couch, Bokuto collapsed into uncontrollable laughter. Ushijima, sitting beside him, seemed very unsure of how to respond to what he was seeing. Despite having chosen each piece himself, Kuroo could not have possibly been prepared for the outfit in its full glory. He joined Bokuto in his hysterics. The noise brought Daichi out of his room, and soon enough, he was laughing, too. Oikawa didn’t seem amused. He looked downright enraged.

“Kuroo Tetsurou, I absolutely hate you.”

The door slammed, and Kuroo heard the lock click behind Oikawa as he stormed back inside. Kuroo tried to control his laughter as he knocked on the door.

“Oikawa, I’m sorry, let me in and I’ll help you for real this time.”

“I'm never trusting you again.”

“I’m sorry, I really am, you just seemed so stressed, I thought it would be good to get you to loosen up.”

The door unlocked. Kuroo took it as a sign of forgiveness and stepped back into Oikawa’s room. The man looked awful. He was lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, still wearing that sweater, looking like he was questioning every choice he had ever made. Kuroo sat down on the bed next to him.

“I’ve never seen you like this before a date. You’re a wreck, man. What’s up?”

Oikawa’s eyes were still fixed on the ceiling.

“Kuroo, I know I date a lot, okay? I like flirting, I like being flirted with. It doesn’t have to mean anything, you know? They’re people I like enough to get coffee with, maybe hook up with, but it won’t go anywhere. It doesn’t mean anything.”

He nodded, confused. Oikawa looked at him with desperate eyes.

“I've known this guy for a while now, and... I like him a lot, Kuroo. I really, really want this one to mean something.”

That made sense.

“Okay, okay, get up. I’m gonna actually help you pick something out.” Oikawa brightened.

“I knew it, you really do love me.”

“Let’s not push it.”

“Rude!”

This time, when Oikawa stepped out of his room, he was met with a low whistle instead of Bokuto’s laughter.

“Damn, alright, this one’s a lot better. This one definitely works for you.”

Ushijima nodded his agreement. Daichi pretended to fan himself. While Oikawa basked in the flattery, Kuroo grinned with pride.

“I’m heading out now, wish me luck!” Oikawa strutted towards the door with far more confidence than he had before.

“I hope you have a nice time.”

“Go get ‘em, tiger!”

“Stay safe! No glove, no love! Establish a safeword!”

Kuroo just smiled and waved. The outfit did look good. Maybe not as good as his first choice, but still.

3: Bokuto

Sure, it was childish. But that was how you really got to Bokuto. When he was in a good mood, the man could shake off practically anything, but somehow, playground insults really cut him deep. Which was why Kuroo was running as fast as he could from Bokuto, who had just been informed that he was no longer invited to Kuroo’s birthday party.

“You son of a bitch, get back here!”

Kuroo cackled.

“Come catch me first, butthead!”

“Excuse me? EXCUSE ME?”

Oh shit, that one had landed too. Kuroo ran even faster, and laughed even harder, as Bokuto continued chasing him through the park. They probably looked like idiots, but Kuroo didn’t care. It was hard to focus on dignity when he was running for his life. No one remembered how the conflict had started. Ushijima had decided to eat his lunch outside since the weather was nice, Daichi had suggested they all go to the park and make a picnic of it, and somehow the excitement of the first warm day of Spring had awakened a child in the two technically-adult men who were now careening through the peacefulness of nature. Kuroo’s foot hit a rock, and he stumbled. He caught himself just in time to keep running, but Bokuto was gaining on him. He yelped, he sprinted as hard as he could, but—

CRASH!

He felt Bokuto’s arms wrap around his waist as he tackled him with all his might. Kuroo really had to stop picking fights with absolutely jacked guys who didn’t know their own strength. Well, one guy in particular. As the two hit the ground, he felt the wind get knocked out of his body. Bokuto seemed to realize that he was gasping for breath, and let up some of his weight.

“Shit, bro, I’m sorry,” he managed to force out between the laughter and panting. “Are you good? I keep forgetting how lanky you are.”

“I— (gasp) I’m not (gasp) lanky, you’re ju— (gasp) you’re just heavy.”

Bokuto helped him up from the ground with a smile. They started making their way back to their group.

“Yeah, ‘cause I’m so strong. You should’ve thought of that before you started a fight.”

“I didn’t start shit, and you know it.”

“No man, seriously, you said I wasn’t invited to your birthday party. Fighting words.”

Kuroo laughed.

“I was joking. Obviously, you’re invited to my birthday party.”

“I better be. Never say that to me again. You know it would kill me if you didn’t invite me to your birthday party.”

They grinned at each other.

“I know it. Don’t worry, I'm giving you a blanket invitation forever. If I ever don’t invite you, just show up anyway, I'll always want you around.”

Bokuto looked genuinely touched by the sentiment, and wrapped an arm around Kuroo's shoulder. When they got back to the picnic table, their roommates were still pretending not to know them.

“Don’t worry guys, we’ve made up. Bokuto is allowed at my birthday party again.”

“Oh, well, _what a relief_.”

4: Daichi

Daichi Sawamura liked to think of himself as a pretty patient guy. Sure, he could get mad, and he could lay down the law when he needed to, but high school had taught him that he could take quite a lot of absolute tomfoolery before he really lost it.

Unfortunately for Daichi, Tetsuro Kuroo liked to think of himself as a man capable of quite a lot of absolute tomfoolery.

Kuroo was shocked when he came home to find an unfamiliar woman sitting on the couch, looking a little out of place.

“Uh, hi, have we met?”

The woman— probably about their age, actually— jumped at his voice.

“Oh! Sorry to intrude, I’m Yui Michimiya, I’m a friend of Daichi’s.”

“Tetsurou Kuroo, good to meet you.”

He smiled as he appraised Michimiya. She seemed nice, as much as one could after one sentence. Short hair, soft eyes, an approachable smile, and a strong physique— maybe not Kuroo’s type, but she was definitely pretty. Hadn’t she said she was Daichi’s friend? The name didn’t sound familiar. Kuroo didn’t think Daichi had ever mentioned her before. She had certainly never visited. But Daichi had been going out for coffee pretty frequently these days...

Oh.  
_Ohohoho_.

Daichi came back into the living room with two cups of tea to find Kuroo and Michimiya making easy conversation. He and Kuroo locked eyes. Daichi shot him a look that Kuroo knew to be his _please-behave-just-this-once_ face. Kuroo returned with his gleeful _no-I-will-not-behave-because-you-can’t-yell-at-me-when-we-have-company_ grin.

“Daichi, I can’t believe you didn’t introduce me to your friend!”

Daichi took a deep breath.

“Sorry about that. Michimiya, this is Kuroo, my roommate. Kuroo, this is Michimiya. She’s a friend from Karasuno. Don’t you have homework to be doing?”

“Homework? When we have a guest?” Kuroo scoffed, “I never thought you were so inhospitable, Sawamura. So tell me, how long have you two known each other?”

Michimiya, blissfully unaware of the shenanigans that were surely afoot, began to tell Kuroo of their times together in high school. He listened intently, asked plenty of questions, and was overall very polite, aside from the way he ignored all of Daichi’s attempts to shut down the conversation.

The front door opened again.

“Ushijima,” Kuroo called, “have you meet Michimiya? She’s Daichi’s friend.”

Ushijima gave her a short but polite hello and went on his way. Not at all what Kuroo was hoping for.

“She was the captain of the Karasuno girls’ team!” Count on volleyball to get Ushijima’s attention.

“Really? I believe you competed against the Shiratorizawa women’s team once.” Michimiya shuddered at the memory.

“Yeah, it didn’t go too well. We were lucky to take even one set.”

  
“I’m told you didn’t score much, but your receives were remarkable. Tell me, how did you handle—“

As Ushijima interrogated the poor woman about her former team’s techniques, Kuroo met Daichi’s eyes. He wiggled his eyebrows at a frankly alarming speed before interrupting the conversation.

“So, Michimiya, you’ve known Daichi for a while, huh? Are you two close?”

She seemed startled at the question.

“I mean, we didn’t talk too much after graduation, but we got back in touch recently to—“

Just then, Bokuto came out of the shower with a towel around his waist. Daichi closed his eyes and counted to ten.

“Oh! New face! Hey, who’s this?”

Michimiya did an admirable job of maintaining eye contact as she introduced herself.

“Bokuto, I think this may be the friend who’s been taking Daichi out for coffee so often these days,” Kuroo said. He looked at Michimiya, who nodded somewhat sheepishly. Bokuto’s eyes widened.

“So are you two friends, or like, _friends_? Or, yknow, _frieeeends_? Or—“

Daichi promptly cut him off by physically shoving him in the direction of his room.

“Go put some clothes on. _Now_. Michimiya, I’m so sorry—“

“Oh my god, no way!”

Oikawa’s voice cut through the conversation.

“Oikawa, hi! I didn’t expect to see you here!” Daichi looked confused.

“You two know each other?”

Oikawa winked at him.

“I made a point to get to know all the girls’ teams in the prefecture.”

“Of course. Anyway, I’m glad we’re all getting along, but could we please—“

“I haven’t talked to Michimiya in ages! We have to catch up! So, did you end up getting them to go to morning practices? I know you had a hard time—”

Knowing he had lost all hope of regaining control of the situation, Daichi tapped Kuroo on the shoulder and gestured for him to follow him into the kitchen. Once there, he closed the door behind him. From the look on Daichi’s face, Kuroo had a feeling he was in for a hell of a lecture.

“Hey, it’s not my fault that she wants to meet your friends, we’re a charming bunch.”

Daichi didn’t seem amused. If anything, he seemed desperate.

“Why do you have to make things difficult? Can I not have one nice conversation without someone derailing it? She’s a nice girl, can you not just let us be?”  
It was Kuroo’s turn to be annoyed.

“How could we not be curious? You never told us you were seeing anyone! And honestly, imagine how must she feel, turning up to your house to find out that none of your friends know about her!”

At that, Daichi snapped.

“We are not going out! We are not hooking up! She and I have been talking about going back to Karasuno to help out the new team. She has a lovely boyfriend, and she is not interested in me at all, so I can imagine,” Daichi gritted his teeth, “that all your... implications,” he took a step closer to Kuroo, “would make her a little,” step, “bit,” step, “uncomfortable.”

Kuroo gulped, out of both fear and shame. He hadn’t considered that he might be upsetting her. And _damn_ , Daichi could be _scary_.

“I’m really sorry. I... I misread that situation.”  
Daichi didn’t break his stern gaze.

“And how are you going to fix it?”

“I’ll clear things up with the other guys, and I’ll apologize to her for the trouble.”

“Good.”

Laughter rang out from the other room, so it seemed that Michimiya was having a nice time in spite of everything. Daichi let out a long breath and stepped away from Kuroo. They stood in the kitchen for a few more minutes, before Bokuto yelled to them from the other room.

“Guys, Michimiya’s leaving! Quit being assholes and say goodbye!”

With one last warning glance to Kuroo, Daichi left the kitchen. Kuroo followed after. They all said their goodbyes, and Kuroo pulled Michimiya aside for a moment to apologize for making assumptions.

“That’s alright,” she laughed, “people thought we were a thing all through high school too. I’m used to it.”

When she had left, and the others had gone back to their business, Kuroo approached Daichi.

“I like Michimiya. She's fun. You should have her over more often.” Daichi chuckled.

“I can't believe it, but she really likes you guys too, even after all that. She’s a good friend.”

“Seems like it.”

“A good _friend_ , Kuroo.”

“Sure, I get the message. Say, Daichi...” He looked up to see a mischievous smile on Kuroo’s face.

“Has your _friend_ ever told you that you’re kinda hot when you’re mad?”

+1: Kenma

Ushijima woke up to what sounded like yelling and shushing from the living room at— he checked the time— two in the morning. Curious, concerned, and more than a little irritated, he went to see what all the noise was about, and was surprised to find that Bokuto was the one doing the shushing. He sat on the couch with a soothing arm around Kuroo, who was hunched over with his head in his hands, talking far louder than anyone should have been at this hour. They hadn’t noticed him, so Ushijima caught a little bit of their conversation:

“—honestly thought this was over, I shouldn’t have left, thank fuck I at least stayed in Tokyo, those fuckers—“

“Shh. I know. We’re gonna handle it tomorrow, okay, I swear we’re gonna kill them—“

“No, no, see, he specifically told me not to do that, he doesn’t want to make a scene or anything.”

Ushijima cleared his throat, and the two looked up at him. Kuroo’s eyes were red with tears, and his face was equally red with anger. Bokuto looked just as angry, and more serious than Ushijima had ever seen him before.

“It’s late.”

Kuroo didn't meet his eyes.

“Sorry. We’ll quiet down. Go back to bed.” Ushijima sat on the couch next to him instead.

“What happened?”

Bokuto ran a soothing hand across Kuroo’s back.

“You know the setter for Nekoma? His name’s Kenma, super cool guy, badass hair, really smart and all?”

Sounded vaguely familiar. Ushijima nodded.

“Apparently, he’s been getting shit from some of his classmates. He has a hard time making friends, and now that Kuroo’s not there to sit with him at lunch and hang out between classes...”

Bokuto trailed off. He really didn’t need to say anything more. Ushijima knew what he meant. He remembered growing up as the weird one, as the guy who didn’t get jokes, who didn’t seem to filter his thoughts. What would high school have been like if he hadn’t had his teammates, if Tendou hadn’t been there for him, God, if he hadn’t been there for Tendou—

“Did he tell you their names?”

Kuroo looked up at him, confused.

“I don’t think so.”

“Ask him.” There was a hint of a threat in his tone. Kuroo sighed.

“I tried, but he doesn’t want to—“

“Ask again.” Okay, more than a hint. Ushijima’s voice was low, but somehow just as loud as if he’d been speaking normally. Loud enough, apparently, to wake Oikawa and Daichi.

“Okay, what the hell, guys? Do we really need to be talking at 2 A.M.?”

“Oikawa, wait. I think something’s up.”

  
Oikawa joined the others on the couch. Daichi crouched down in front of Kuroo, who was glaring at the floor, to meet his eyes.

“What’s going on?”

“Kenma’s getting bullied again.” Oikawa let out a shocked breath. Daichi’s eyes widened.

“Is it bad?”

“I don’t know _how_ bad. I don’t think he told me everything. He just called and asked if I could walk home with him tomorrow, apparently some asshole was following him, and of course he doesn’t want to tell anyone on the team, even though I know they would help him—“

Daichi placed a strong hand on his shoulder. Bokuto held him a little tighter. Even Ushijima reached out to pat him on the back.

“So, what are we doing to them?”

Oikawa didn’t know the kid. But anyone who made his friend cry was getting hell for it. Besides, he had been picked on plenty in his life, and the best solution he knew of was to get Iwa-chan to beat the shit out of whoever was doing it. He was out of town, though, so maybe five powerful college athletes would do the trick. Kuroo looked to Daichi for some semblance of sanity, but all he found was the same murderous rage as the others. Daichi knew Kenma, not well, but he knew him. He was a smart player, he tried hard for his team, he handled Hinata’s energy like a champ, he didn’t deserve this. Obviously, no one deserved this, but Daichi felt a sense of protectiveness for Kenma. All of them did. He was only a year younger than them, but he wasn’t exactly the strongest or the most assertive. Maybe he could fend for himself, but he shouldn’t have to.

“Kuroo, you got their names, right?”

“No, no, we’re not going after them.”

“Of course we are,” Oikawa interrupted, “we’re going to beat them up and no one’s gonna mess with your friend again.”

“I don’t think we need violence.” Kuroo was almost relieved Ushijima’s apparent pacifism, until he added, “but we need to scare them. Maybe just threaten them. It would send a message.”

“Yeah,” Bokuto added, “and then if this ever happens again, we follow through.”

“LISTEN.” Everyone fell silent to hear Kuroo. “He told me specifically not to seek anyone out, and I’m respecting that. Here’s what we’re gonna do: I’m going to walk him home from school tomorrow, we’re going to tell a teacher if he wants to, and if he doesn’t want to, we’re respecting his wishes. He thinks it’ll blow over. I don’t know if he’s right, but I’m not about to put a spotlight on him if he doesn’t want it.”

Having said all he could, Kuroo put his head back down in his hands. No one spoke for a while.

“He could come here.” Kuroo looked up at Daichi. “He could talk to us. And we have plenty of video games here, so even if he doesn’t want to talk, we can just be with him.”

“Oh, we can get him ice cream or something!” Oikawa’s voice was bright. “Kuroo, what foods does he like? We can get snacks tomorrow.”

Bokuto looked at his friend. “If you think he’d be up for it, I mean, it’s kind of a lot of people for him, but he knows us and the others don’t have to bother him...”

“I have a sword.”

Everyone stared at Ushijima.

“I can give him a sword. No one would be a threat to him. I can teach him to use it. As a setter, he must be good at thinking on his feet. He could almost certainly use a sword.”

Kuroo looked around the room. “That... it might not be a bad idea. Not the sword part. That’s a bad idea. But I’ll text him about it, he’s probably still up anyway, and if he says yes, I’ll bring him here.”

Daichi smiled. “Let him know he’s always welcome.” Bokuto nodded his agreement.

“Ushijima, I’m a setter, can you teach me to use a sword?”

“You don’t need one.”

While Oikawa argued with Ushijima, Kuroo smiled down at his phone.

“Well, he said ‘fine’ in all-lowercase with no punctuation, which means he likes the idea. Let’s all just go to bed, we can talk to him about what’s going on tomorrow.”

The next day, Kenma spent his time after volleyball practice receiving hugs he didn’t want, being asked far too many personal questions, playing video games against absolute noobs, and being in a room with Bokuto and Oikawa at the same time. It was exhausting and terrible. But Kuroo was there, and the others were quiet when they needed to be, and it was good to know that he wasn’t alone.

That night, when Kuroo walked him back to his house, Kenma stopped him just before going in.

”Kuroo... thanks.”

”Of course. You can come over whenever, you know that, right? Seriously, they all like you, and I miss seeing you every day like crazy, and—“

Kenma hugged him.

”Please tell Ushijima I don’t want his sword.”

Kuroo laughed.   
  
“Come back sometime and tell him yourself.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kenma's bullying problem is resolved by a combination of 1. he absolutely DESTROYS his classmates in a Smash tournament and they can't help but respect him and 2. sometimes the other four ex-captains will show up at Nekoma without Kuroo and just... stand there. They're so scary. Kenma hasn't noticed them yet. Daichi said Ushijima can't bring the sword. Either way Kenma is very happy now. Michimiya and Oikawa go for brunch a lot.


	2. Ushijima: Missing Subtlety + Getting the Hint

1: Bokuto (+Tendou)

Ushijima’s roommates were good people. It made sense that they all had plenty of friends. It made just as much sense that these friends would want to visit often. It wasn’t uncommon for him to walk in and find someone he had never met before sitting on the couch like they lived there. Ushijima didn’t really mind, but he never felt much need to invite people over himself. Still, watching everyone else rush to the door and throw their arms around an old friend, introduce them with excitement to the rest of the group, and spend the day catching up, laughing, smiling… it seemed nice.

“I was considering inviting a friend to our next game night. Would anyone mind that?”

Eyebrows raised from every corner of the room.

“I have been talking to my best friend often, but we haven’t seen each other in a while. I think you would all get along well.”

“Ushijima bringing a friend over,” Oikawa wiped an imaginary tear from his eye, “he’s growing up so fast.”

“Sure, you can invite him,” Daichi said. “Anyone we know?”

“Tendou Satori. You may remember him from our match.”

Daichi’s mind was flooded with memories of staring eyes, uncanny blocks, and a cheerful song about crushing his team’s resolve. He almost regretted his answer.

_Be brave, Daichi. Ushijima never has friends over. Do it for him._

Looking around the room, everyone else seemed similarly uneasy, except for Ushijima, who had a small smile on his face.

“I will let him know.”

Once he was out of earshot, Oikawa spoke up.

“That’s the blocker who laughed whenever he saw his opponents cry, right?”

“And sang creepy songs about it?”

“He did that to you guys, too?”

They wanted Ushijima to have a good time, but _God, at what cost?_

As it turned out, the only cost was a little extra money for pizza and forfeiting any hope of a relaxing evening. For all his sadistic tendencies on the volleyball court, Tendou had a warm heart. He asked the former captains how their teams were doing; he spoke carefully to Oikawa, until he was sure there was no lingering hurt from high school; above all, he seemed to take care of Ushijima. He was the only one who could fully read Ushijima’s expressions. When he seemed confused, or frustrated, or overwhelmed, Tendou checked in and made sure he took as many breaks as he needed. They were an odd pair, but seeing their interactions made it clear why the two were so close.

Beyond that, Tendou was great to play games with. He liked to introduce absurd “house rules”— UNO really _is_ more fun when you can try to sneak more cards into the opponents’ hands. He suggested some strange penalties for losing, as well— although having to eat your Monopoly money was vetoed, they all secretly wished they could see Daichi try. He brought chaos into everything, but once you let go of the delusion that the official rules mattered, his way of playing was a lot of fun. Everyone was delighted to have him there.

_Especially_ Bokuto.

The two were a dangerous combination. Bokuto was willing to indulge every strange, half-serious suggestion Tendou made, and Tendou’s ideas kept on impressing him (while “Knife Twister” was shot down rather quickly, Bokuto looked alarmingly intrigued at the concept). Bokuto was absolutely fascinated by Tendou. When the time came for Kuroo to order dinner, he asked their new guest about his topping preferences.

“Tendou, how do you feel about pineapple on pizza?”

“Amateur hour. Pizza on pineapple.”

Bokuto was the only one who had a response to that.

“Like, pizza sauce and cheese on pineapple slices?”

“Precisely.”

“…and then do you put pineapple chunks on top of that?”

Tendou’s eyes somehow grew even wider as he grinned.

“You’re a wise owl. When I make that, I would be honored to share it with you.”

“Man, you’re a _freak!_ ”

While Tendou laughed, Ushijima’s eyes shot up, locking intensely on Bokuto. Before he could say anything, Kuroo interrupted.

“Ushijima, I get the feeling I’m not getting a straight answer from him, what kind of pizza does Tendou like?”

“Anything without meat is okay.”

Oikawa looked at him curiously.

“Tendou, are you a vegetarian?”

“Karma comes for us all, and flesh is nothing but flesh.”

Bokuto looked at him with eyes full of wonderment.

“So. Fucking. _Weird._ ”

Tendou looked pleased at that. Ushijima did not.

The tension broke when they were playing a game of poker. Whoever had suggested that they play a game of bluffing with Tendou Satori must have been out of their mind, because he missed _nothing_. Bokuto lost yet another hand to Tendou.

“How do you _always know_?”

“Ah, foolish Bokuto. When you get a bad hand, you stop bouncing your leg for a second. Frankly, it’s subtler than I would’ve expected from you,” he grinned darkly, “but no one hides from me for long.”

Everyone had long since gotten used to Tendou’s ominous way of speaking. Bokuto shook his head through his amazed laughter.

“You’re a goddamn monster, you know that?”

“Don’t say that again.”

The room went silent. Although his words weren’t harsh, there was more anger in Ushijima’s voice than any of his roommates had heard before.

“He is a guest here, and my friend. Stop being rude and apologize.”

Bokuto looked confused and more than a little bit scared. Tendou put a hand on Ushijima’s shoulder.

“Wakatoshi, he didn’t mean it like that.”

“He can’t say that to you. You shouldn’t let him.”

“It’s okay, he means it in a good way, isn’t that right?”

Bokuto nodded, still frightened. Ushijima didn’t look happy, but at Tendou’s words and the soothing hand on his arm, he backed down.

“I am going to get some water.”

Ushijima left the room. After a few awkward moments, Tendou offered an explanation.

“Well, I’m sure you’ve all noticed that he doesn’t always pick up on tone, so he thought that Bokuto was making fun of me.” Tendou sighed. “Usually, he can tell when it’s okay from my reaction, but comments like ‘weird’ and ‘monster’ were… troublesome in my childhood, so he is a little defensive about those.”

Bokuto finally burst out of his silence.

“I am so sorry, I didn’t mean it like that, I honestly didn’t, I had no idea that was—“

Tendou held up a finger to quiet him.

“No need to apologize. Those words might have upset me at another time, but I see them differently now. In volleyball, being a freak and a monster were my greatest strengths. My teammates embraced me, and perhaps we wouldn’t have been so successful if I hadn’t been monstrous.”

He smiled at Bokuto.

“And I know you mean well, because you’re an absolute freak yourself.”

Bokuto looked genuinely proud. Just then, Ushijima came back into the room, seeming considerably calmer.

“Bokuto, I understand that you meant those things kindly. I’m sorry for lashing out.”

“Aww, that’s alright. I’ll try and make it clearer when I’m not being mean for real.”

Ushijima nodded.

“I appreciate that. Now,” he sat back down and picked up his cards, “shall we continue losing to this monster?”

Tendou’s laugh would have seemed maniacal if his smile hadn’t been so fond.

2: Kuroo

Kuroo slammed the door shut and stomped into the dorm. He hoped he hadn’t woken anyone up, but his anger needed to go somewhere, and that innocent door was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Welcome home, took you long enough.” Oikawa stepped out of his room. “How was the date?”

Kuroo mumbled something.

“What was that?”

“I got stood up.”

Oikawa laughed for a second before he saw the stormy look on Kuroo’s face.

“Wait, seriously? I’m so sorry, that hurts. Are you doing okay?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“If he didn’t show up, why are you back so late?”

Kuroo turned to look him with red, puffy eyes.

“I waited for two hours. After that, I texted him to tell him I was leaving, and I waited another hour for him to text back. He didn’t, so I just drove around, and then I came home.” Kuroo didn’t mention the part where he cried. The pitying look on Oikawa’s face told him that he already knew.

Oikawa hugged him tightly. _He may be kind of an asshole,_ Kuroo thought, _but Oikawa can be so comforting when his loved ones need it_.

So he gently pushed him away.

“I really don’t need comforting right now. I need alcohol and space.”

Oikawa nodded, pulled a bottle from the cupboard, and went to his room, leaving Kuroo to wallow in peace. He sat at the kitchen table for a while, trying not to blame himself, trying not to look at his phone, trying not to wonder why the guy hadn’t wanted to see him. He was so busy trying to keep his head in check that he didn’t hear Ushijima walk in.

“Kuroo, you’re back. How was your date?”

_If I ignore him, maybe he’ll go away._

“Kuroo? I asked how your date was.”

_Or not. Fine, short answers and hope he gets the message._

“He didn’t show.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Did he tell you why?”

“No.”

“Did you wait long?”

“Yeah.”

“Did you eat dinner?”

“No.”

Ushijima frowned.

“I understand that you’re upset, but you need to eat.”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. Apparently, he would need to drop a few more hints.

“I’ll make myself something.”

Ushijima didn’t budge.

“Let’s go somewhere. I’m hungry too, but we might wake everyone up if we try to cook now.”

“Good idea. _I’ll_ go ahead and do that.” Kuroo stood up to leave, but Ushijima followed after him.

“You’ve been drinking. I’ll drive.”

Kuroo sighed. He didn’t _want_ to tell his good friend to just fuck off, but it didn’t seem like anything short of that would convince Ushijima to leave him alone. He was just about ready to do it when his stomach growled. _Damn it_ , he really was hungry.

“Fine.”

Ushijima nodded and grabbed his keys.

“Where are we going?”

“Wherever’s closest.”

Apparently, Ushijima wasn’t listening, because he drove past a couple closer (and probably nicer) restaurants before stopping at Kuroo’s go-to place for fast, cheap comfort food.

“Not the healthiest choice.”

“I think this will make you happier.”

Despite his annoyance, Kuroo appreciated the gesture. If Ushijima wouldn’t leave him alone until he felt helpful, Kuroo figured he might as well let him.

“Can you go in and order for me? I don’t want to walk in looking like this.”

Ushijima nodded.

“What would you like?”

When he returned to the car with the food, Kuroo got out his wallet to pay for his meal.

“How much do I owe you?”

“Nothing. It’s on me.”

Kuroo didn’t have the energy to argue with him. He started eating. As soon as he had something in his stomach other than alcohol, he felt better. Ushijima seemed to notice that his face looked a little less gloomy.

“Do you want to talk?”

Kuroo looked at Ushijima like he had asked if he wanted to saw his own leg off.

“I understand if you don’t. Some people find it helpful.”

Ushijima was looking at him earnestly. He really was just trying to help.

_Oh, fuck it._

For the next… he couldn’t tell how long, Kuroo ranted about all the insecurity, anger, pain, and frustration he had felt since he first suspected that his date wasn’t showing up. Ushijima just listened. He gave no outward indication that he was paying attention, but Kuroo knew. By the time he finished talking, he was crying again. Just sobbing into a handful of napkins in his friend’s car in the parking lot of a trashy chain restaurant at… _holy shit_ , was that the time?

“It’s late, let’s head back.”

“Okay.”

They drove home in comfortable silence. Kuroo still didn’t feel like he needed to be hugged and told that everything would be alright, but this was a lot better than being alone. When Ushijima parked the car, they sat there for a moment.

“I am sorry for what happened. You deserve better than that. He probably wasn’t good enough for you.”

Kuroo chuckled at his friend’s clumsy attempt at reassurance.

“Thanks for everything. It wasn’t much of a date,” he joked, “but hey, a nice guy took me out and bought me dinner. The night wasn’t a total waste.”

He grinned over at Ushijima, only to see a concerned frown on his face.

“Kuroo, I like you very much, and I’m flattered, but I was not trying to take you on a date.”

Kuroo’s howls of laughter probably woke up the whole neighborhood, but once Ushijima realized his mistake, he was just glad to see his friend so happy.

3: Daichi

“Do you think we should do something?”

“Bokuto, _please_ don’t _._ Just let me have this.”

The source of Oikawa’s glee was a charming young woman from the local volleyball team who had just won a very tough game. She was laughing, blushing, twisting her hair around her finger, and generally doing just about everything she could to express that she was flirting with Ushijima. He did not seem to be catching on.

“Man, she is _going_ for it,” Kuroo observed. “Do you think she’s into the whole stoic and unresponsive thing, or has she just not noticed that he’s giving her absolutely nothing?”

“Cut her some slack. If a tall, good-looking man approached you out of nowhere to _compliment your form_ , you’d be doing the same thing,” said Daichi. He felt a little bad for the woman. She was an excellent player, the ace spiker for her team, and Ushijima had been very impressed by the match. When they went out for lunch after watching the game, they wound up in the same restaurant that the winning team had chosen for their post-victory celebration, and Ushijima had caught her by the soda machine to compliment her playing and discuss technique before anyone could stop him. They were lucky the woman had taken his “flirting” well, rather than being understandably terrified and potentially getting them kicked out of the restaurant.

“Poor lady. The longer they go, the more disappointed she’s gonna be.”

Bokuto’s sympathy was not misplaced. Rather than being dissuaded by Ushijima’s lack of apparent response to her coyness, she seemed to become more and more interested.

“What can we do? We can’t just go up and say, ‘sorry, he’s not into you, move along’,” reasoned Oikawa. “Oh my God, wait, Bokuto, go pretend to be his boyfriend!”

Kuroo cackled at the thought. Bokuto seemed to be genuinely considering it. Partially out of curiosity and partially as an effort to prevent whatever awkwardness would result from _that_ idea, Daichi asked the question they had all been ignoring:

“Are we sure he isn’t doing it on purpose?”

The table went silent as they considered the possibility.

“I mean, does anyone know how he feels about dating? I never pegged him as the type to seek out a relationship, but if he does want one, someone who’s good at volleyball would probably be his type.”

“Has he ever mentioned being into anyone?”

Kuroo looked thoughtful.

“I remember him saying he went on a date in his first year, but that they never went on a second date because the person called him boring.”

“Ouch,” Oikawa winced.

“Actually, nevermind, I think we’ve got our answer.”

Everyone looked to where Daichi was pointing. The girl had her hand on Ushijima’s arm. He didn’t look uncomfortable, but he _did_ look incredibly confused.

“Bokuto, now’s your time to shine! Go for it!”

“Bokuto, don’t you dare.”

“Daichi just hates good ideas! Come on, go save your man!”

Before Bokuto could cave in to Oikawa and Kuroo’s urging, Ushijima was on his way back to the table. Daichi felt like he had just dodged a bullet.

“I am beginning to think she may have been flirting with me.”

“What clued you in,” Kuroo deadpanned, “the hair twirling or the gentle caress?”

“She gave me her phone number.”

Oikawa gave him a congratulatory pat on the back.

“Did you _want_ her phone number?” Daichi asked.

Ushijima shook his head.

“I would have liked to stay in touch, but not if she wants a relationship. I feel that I led her on. I should go apologize.”

Bokuto grabbed his shoulders as he turned to leave.

“Ushiwaka, you’re a great guy, but I don’t know if gentle letdowns are your strong point.”

Ushijima nodded.

“I should talk to her. I could make her forget all about him and fall for me instead.”

“Oikawa, you wouldn’t call her either. That doesn’t solve the problem.”

“But we all agree I could if I wanted to.”

“I am still very into the Bokuto plan,” Kuroo chimed in. “I really, really want to see how that plays out.”

Daichi made a decisive choice. “Let’s just not say anything. It sucks, but if our only other plan is convincing her that he’s dating Bokuto, it’s the best we can do.”

Kuroo and Oikawa grumbled. The woman was talking excitedly to her teammates, glancing occasionally at Ushijima. She just looked so hopeful. Daichi felt pretty bad. Looking at Ushijima’s downcast expression, he felt even worse.

“I only hope she doesn’t spend too long waiting for me to call.”

The guilt was piling up.

“Alright, fine,” Daichi caved. “I’ll go talk to her.”

Ushijima looked up at him. For someone who used so few facial expressions, his puppy eyes were surprisingly heart-melting.

“Thank you, Daichi.”

“Yeah, yeah, just don’t do this again.”

Daichi stood up and walked over to the team’s table. About halfway there, he realized that he had no idea what to say. When the woman noticed him approaching, she shushed her teammates. He thought he heard her prompting them to _act natural!_ Daichi took a deep breath.

“Hey, uh, good game today!”

The team thanked him, bemused. Daichi tried to ignore the rest of their stares and focus on the woman who had been talking to Ushijima.

“So… My friend over there was worried that you got the wrong impression. He wasn’t trying to flirt with you, he was just really impressed by your playing. Sorry about the confusion.”

The woman looked disappointed, but not heartbroken. Daichi silently congratulated himself on handling the situation painlessly.

“I thought he seemed a little cold. That’s alright, I’m flattered that he liked my form that much anyway.”

Suddenly, one of her teammates spoke up.

“So, how about _you_? Are you single?”

As the team broke out into laughter, Daichi blushed. _What now?_ Before he could stutter out some kind of flustered response, he felt a strong arm wrap around his shoulder.

“Hey, hey, hey, sorry ladies, but this hunk right here is my _boyfriend!_ ”

4: Oikawa

“There’s no way in hell I’m sharing with him.”

“Oikawa, all of us already moved in. You said it would be fine.”

“Well, I changed my mind.”

Oikawa spent two nights sleeping uncomfortably in his car before he gave in to his sore muscles and decided to sleep in his room. Their dorm was nice— three bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen. Much better than any of them had expected to get in their freshman year. He knew he should count himself lucky that four people he knew were attending the same college as him, that they were all living in the athletes’ residence hall, that they had gotten in touch and signed up to live together in one of the nicer dorms. He _was_ lucky. He should have been able to put aside his old grudges and make a fresh start. After all, they were teammates now, as well as roommates. But every time he looked at Ushijima’s dull, blank face, he saw red.

Daichi had been so hoping to get a room to himself, since there were only five of them. But when Oikawa came inside on their third morning, looking stiff and exhausted, he started packing up his things to move in with Ushijima.

At the start of their second week living together, Oikawa was forced into an intervention.

“This is getting ridiculous. You need to suck it up and get along with him, okay?”

Bokuto was trying very, very hard to keep his volume below yelling. Daichi and Kuroo were glaring, challenging him to disagree. Ushijima was out at class.

“Fine.”

The other three sighed in relief. Bokuto spoke again, less strained this time.

“We like you, okay? We want to live with you. But we like him too, and not all of us can afford to stay in this dorm if we don’t have a fifth person paying.”

Oikawa understood. Fine, alright, he’d try. He’d be decent.

“Are you sure this isn’t going to be an issue?”

Oikawa smiled, empty.

“Of course.”

From that day on, Oikawa was perfectly civil. Well, he was snide, sarcastic, and backhanded, but either Ushijima didn’t notice, or he chose to ignore it. Slowly, they got used to being near each other. Oikawa could sit next to him at dinner or on the couch, he could be in a room alone with him. He could even speak to him sometimes, when he was feeling particularly nice.

“Oikawa. Since everyone else is out, would you like to watch a movie?”

“No, thank you. Some of us actually study, you know!”

“I understand.”

It was better than nothing.

“Oikawa, would you mind helping me with this question?”

“Aw, is it too difficult for you?”

“Yes. That’s why I’m asking for help.”

“Kuroo’s better at science. Go bother him.”

He always said those things like they were jokes. He put a smile on his face and a laugh in his voice, and Ushijima never noticed the hostility.

After their rocky start, the first month passed without incident. The three uninvolved parties seemed to be letting their guards down when the two were in a room together. They could tell that Oikawa was still angry, but they hoped that Ushijima’s combination of patience and unawareness would manage to keep the peace.

Oikawa was washing the dishes when he heard someone walk into the kitchen behind him. _Not today, please_ , he thought. He was already stressed enough without having to deal with an insensitive idiot trying too hard to be friends.

“Oikawa, I wanted to talk to you.”

He forced his voice to sound cheerful.

“Well, you did it. Good job.”

“Thank you?”

_For fuck’s sake, is this guy serious?_

“So, what do you need?”

“I wanted to know why you were angry at me.”

_Were? Past tense?_

“I’m not angry.”

“But you were.”

Oikawa put down the plate he had been absentmindedly rinsing for far longer than necessary and picked up a glass.

“Well, you were a dick in high school. It seems like you’re better now, though, so we shouldn’t have any more problems.”

“I’m sorry about whatever I did to upset you.”

_He honestly doesn’t see what he did wrong?_

“Like I said, no more problems, as long as you don’t keep telling me how totally worthless my teammates are.”

_Too obvious._ He tacked on a laugh at the end of the sentence.

“I never said that. Again, if it sounded like I did, I apologize.”

Oikawa gave up on the pleasant tone of voice.

“You should learn to watch what you say. There’s only so many times a guy can hear that every choice he’s made has been a mistake before it starts to get to him.”

Ushijima was silent for a while. When Oikawa turned to look at him, he saw that he had been staring.

“What? Did you really not think that would bother me? You’re kind of stupid, you know that?”

Ushijima just stared at him with that same blank fucking expression.

“We’re on the same team now. You should get over your pointless—“

_SMASH_

Daichi, Kuroo, and Bokuto ran into the kitchen at the sound of shattering glass. They found Oikawa and Ushijima, standing perfectly still, staring at each other from across the kitchen. Fragments of a cup were scattered on the floor around Ushijima’s feet. To Oikawa’s credit, at least he looked ashamed.

Ushijima walked out of the kitchen. The rest of them stood there, dumbstruck, as they heard him walk out of the dorm.

+1: Oikawa, again

He didn’t know how long he had been in the gym, hitting one serve after another, only stopping when he needed to collect the balls and start over again. He would have preferred to practice spiking, but without anyone else there, he wouldn’t have been able to.

He didn’t know what was going on at the dorm. Maybe Oikawa was getting yelled at. Maybe he was yelling. Whatever was happening, he doubted it was peaceful.

_Bam._

_Bam._

_Bam._

His serves ricocheted off the floor. A lot of them were out. He couldn’t blame himself for being distracted. He tried to recall the conversation as precisely as he could. What had set Oikawa off? Probably telling him to get over his pointless grudge. Had he said something before then to start it? Oikawa hadn’t seemed angry. He was smiling and laughing. Then he was mad. Then he was throwing a glass at Ushijima’s head.

Well, not _at_ his head. Oikawa had good aim. He must have missed on purpose.

At least he wasn’t angry enough to really hurt him.

Ushijima kept serving. He only stopped when the custodian came in to close up the gym. He hadn’t realized it was that late. Hopefully everyone in the dorm was asleep. He didn’t want to run into any of them, especially Oikawa.

When he got back, the first thing he saw was Oikawa, asleep on the couch.

_Naturally._

He tried to get to his room as quietly as possible, but just as he was about to close the door, he heard a voice calling his name.

He turned around. There was no smile on Oikawa’s face this time. He didn’t look happy, but he didn’t look angry, either. Ushijima looked quickly around the room. No easily throwable objects within reach of the couch. He steeled himself and made his way back to stand in front of Oikawa.

“You can sit.”

He sat on the opposite end of the couch.

“Where were you?”

“The gym.”

“I’ve been sitting here for hours. Everyone wanted me to apologize to you when you got back, but you took forever.”

“I am sorry for making you wait.”

Silence.

“I’m also sorry for what I said.”

Oikawa still said nothing.

“I mean, for what I said today, and what I said in high school.”

That got Oikawa’s attention.

“What were you doing in the gym?”

“Practicing serves.”

“Not spikes?”

“No one else was there.”

Oikawa hummed.

“We’re on the same team now. Let me know next time you go. I’ll set for you.”

Before Ushijima could respond, he got up and went to his room.

The next morning, Ushijima came to the kitchen to find Daichi already awake, drinking his coffee. He handed another cup to Ushijima, who thanked him and took a sip. After a few minutes of tired morning quiet, Daichi spoke.

“So, be honest with me. Did he apologize?”

Ushijima thought back to their conversation. Oikawa had never said the word “sorry”, or anything else to that effect. He had sounded cold and curt and not at all contrite. But still…

“Yes. I think he did.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Skipped around in time a little bit with this one! The chapters where Oikawa is mean happen before everything else, I hope that was clear enough.  
> Bokuto and Tendou do end up making Pineapple on Pizza on Pineapple, and it's fucking magical.  
> I hope Kuroo's in character. He strikes me as a guy who wouldn't want to be babied when he's sad, and I think he's probably used to Kenma being the only one who really gets that. I bet he'd let Kuroo vent while playing Tetris or something.  
> I'd love to make an update schedule but I'm starting finals week so you can imagine the kind of stress that I am under


End file.
